Clutch device



March 20, 1945. HERQLD ET AL 2,311,993

' CLUTCH DEVICE' Filed JulyT, 1939 MAM/rodea Patented Mar. 20, 1945 I CLUTCH DEVICE Y James L. Herold... St. 1 Louis,` .andv Frederick, We

va corporatonof Missouri v f Application July?, 1939, Serial No. 283,144

r claim. (ci. 19a-'en This inventionA relates to clutch. devicesV and `is afcontinuationin part of,v our cci-pending appli'- cation, Serial No. 216,316, led June28, 1'938, for Loading. devices.k f

lVarious kinds of machines, including pas teurizersfor bottled liquids, as well asA other machines` for handling bottles or other` articles, are provided with endless carriers :having separated receptacles movable-to transmit rows of articles.

Fig. 1 is a top View of the clutch device through which power is'transmitted.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged section on the line 66 of Fig. 1. l

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 1-.-1'in Fig. 2 looking in the direction indicated by arrows 1.

Fig. 4 is a section on the same line in Fig. 2 looking in the directiony indicated by arrows 8.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged section on the line 9-9 in Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a section on the line lll-I0 in Fig. 5 looking in the direction indicated by arrows l0.

Without pointing out specic details of cooperative machine units, we will refer to the drawing which includes a shaft |55 to drive one of the machine units, and a shaft 45 to operate a second companion unit, said shaft 45 being provided with a wheel 62 for transmission of power to the second unit. vThe shaft |55 is provided with a driving clutch member |56 (Figures 1 and 2) slidably secured to the shaft |55, and yadriven clutch member |51 loosely supported on the shaft |55, said driven clutch member having a hub |58 secured to a reduced portion of the shaft |55 by a collar |59 to prevent longitudinal displacement of the driven clutch member |51 on said shaft.

The driven clutch member |51 is provided with an integral sprocket wheel |60 adapted to transmit power through a chain |61, shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1, to a sprocket wheel |62 rotatably mounted on the operating shaft 45, said sprocket wheel |62 being adapted to transmit power to the 55,

operatingzshaift 45'ithrough1a1driven member.:` |63A slidazbly .secured 'Lto :said shaft by 1 a key vl das f The drivingclutchamember.|561on .the shaft' |55cis provided wiislrr'.I driving abutmentsnorteeth |651andI 1.6 6 fadaptedto engageabutments or teethl |611and. [Gazon the :driven 'clutch member?. |511;l

The .teeth on thef'driving and driven-clutch mem bersfare soarrangedvthat when the .driving-tooth |65f'1is locatedzfbetween. the driventootl'i` [61S and: Y' an/'abutmentfl'sfon therclutcn member |.5|',:'tl're various driven elements of. one; machine uniiiwilll be synchronized #with- .the other :machine unit.

The driving :tooth-:I 65 :upon entering the xspace r between they abutment 1:69 fandxdriven' tootheii. f provides a positivefinterlock'zof the clutchf mem-- bersf .to positively prevent. vdisplacement:and. in-

suresa. the desired synchronizing effect..l jan:

illustration f' of a meansffor y.shiftingsaidfdriving clutch member, we havexshown. a; leverz-I 1|1upivot.-` ally secured to a support. |1| onthe side wall A of a housing, said lever being provided at one end with a bifurcated portion" |12 pivotally mounted on asplit wheel |13 loosely supported in an annulargroove in a hub |14 of the driving clutch member |56. The lever |10 is movable to shift the driving teeth of clutch member |56 into and out of driving engagement with the teeth of the driven clutch member.

To prevent driving engagement of the clutch teeth .on the driving and driven clutch'members until the desired operative relationship of the machine units is established, the clutch members ISB-and |51 areprovided with means for predetermining the position of said clutch members so that the clutch tooth |65 may be selectively shifted into driving engagement with the driven tooth |61. Said means includes a guide member |16 on the driving clutch member |56, and an abutment flange |11, on the other clutch member |51 adapted to engage said guidemember |16 to prevent driving engagement of the clutch teeth. The abutment iiangel |11 is provided with a recess |18 adapted to receive the guide member |16 and permit driving engagement ofthe clutch teeth |65 and |61 when the required relationship is established.

In event of an overload on the operating shaft ,45, the teeth of the driving .clutch member |56 are automatically disengaged from the teeth on the driven clutch member |51 to stop the supplyV vided at one end with a bifurcated portion 18| pivotally mounted on a split wheel |82 loosely supported in an annular groove in the hub |14 of the slidable driving clutch member 156-. The other end of the lever |19 is provided with a bifurcated portion |19' extending partially around the driven member |63 on the shaft 45, and adapted to be engaged by an annular iiange |83 on the driven member |63 in response to an overload on the operating shaft 45.

The driven member |63 is provided with rollers |84 rotatably supported on extended ears |85 of the driven member. The rollers |84 are normally held in recesses |86 in a hub |31 of the sprocket wheel |62 by springs |88 interposed between a hub |89 xed to the end of the operating shaft 45 and spring seats |90 in the driven member, as shown in Figure 5.

While the rollers |84 are held in the recesses |86 power is transmitted from the sprocket wheel |62 through its hub |81 to the slidable driven member |63 and operating shaft 45. However, whenever there is an obstruction .to the rotation of the operating shaft and the driven member |63, the hub |81 of the sprocket wheel |62 will continue to turn, and the cam or inclined walls of the recess |86 will cooperate with the rollers |84 to shift thedriven member |63 longitudinally oi the shaft from a normal position shown in Fig. 5 to a position shown in Fig, 1. A collar 19| on the shaft 45 prevents shifting of the hub |81 of the sprocket wheel. l

As the driven member .|63 moves to the .position shown in Figure 1, the annular .flange |83 Vthereon engages the bifureated portion |19' of clutch member. |51 and stop the transmission of power to the operating shaft 45.

To prevent the rollers |84 from entirely leaving the horizontal plane of the inclined walls of the recesses |86, an abutment |92 carried by the sprocket wheel |62 is adapted to cooperate with stop members |93 on the annular flange |83 of the driven member |63, as shown in Figures 5 and 6 to limit the rotation of the sprocket wheel |62 independently of the driven member |63.

We claim:

In a device for synchronizing machine units,

'a clutch through which power is transmitted to one of said machine units, said clutch including a constantly rotating driving clutch member having a plurality of driving clutch teeth, a` driven clutch member having a plurality of clutch teeth adapted to engage said driving clutch teeth to transmit power to the last mentioned machine unit, one of said clutch members being provided with spaced abutment members, the other clutch member having a tooth adapted to be located between and interlocked with said abutment members when the machine units are synchronized with each other, and means for preventing the transmission of power from one clutch member to the other except when the last mentioned tooth is located between said abutment members, said means comprising a guide member on one of said clutch members, and an abutment flange rigidly united with the other clutch member adapted to engage said guide member to prevent the transmission oi power from one clutch member to the other when the machine units are not synchronized with each other, said abutment flange being provided with a recess to receive said guide member and permit said last mentioned tooth to move into interlocked relationship with said abutment members when themachine units are synchronized with each other.

JAMES L. HEROLD. FREDERICK W. WEHMILLER 

